The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.

Loading ...

Loading ...

This story appears in the {{article.article.magazine.pretty_date}} issue of {{article.article.magazine.pubName}}. Subscribe

Today, at the largest FinTech Hackathon in the world with leaders such as Sallie Krawcheck, former head of Merril Lynch, Smith Barney and Matt Turck, FirstMark Capital judging the teams. Project Freedom is a movement that started at the FinTech Hackathon to save freelancers from a painful tax season.

Project Freedom started because the FinTech Hackathon is looking for real solutions to financial problems. Freelancers and business owners alike are suffering because 1099s are painfully complicated and the tax audits that result from them are terrifying.

IRS tax extensions for those last minute freelancers who need more time!

The average tax audit leaves a business with $26,365 dollars in additional taxes owed to the IRS. What’s even worse is that 87% of all employment tax audits are lost (scary!). The IRS collected 824 billion dollars in employment tax audits in 2011. President Obama has ordered 6,000 additional employment tax audits, so this is only the beginning of something bigger.

And soon, freelancers are going to be more than 50% of the workforce in the United States in less than 4 years. As a business owner, I just faced 1099 pain during tax season. Someone needs to address the problems that freelancers face on a daily basis. Project Freedom will help the next generation of Americans.